Thanks for your reviews guys, the truly mean a lot to me. Well, without further ado, here's an update, albeit a short one. I hope you enjoy it.
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To say that the whole week was total chaos would be an understatement. Guess that getting ten hours of sleep in five days had taken a toll on Lisa's nervous system. Add an unhealthy dose of paranoia to the mix, and there she was… a shadow of her former self. Heavy coffee drinking would only make matters worse to the point that even Cynthia had noticed that something was definitely wrong. The redhead decided it was time to address the problem for Lisa's sake, so she took the chance during coffee break.
"Lisa, you've barely touched your food? Are you all right?" Cynthia asked as she set her sandwich back on her plate.
"Sure I am dad" Lisa replied, yawning for the thousandth time before sipping on her macchiato "I guess, I'm just not that hungry"
"You're doing it again!" Cynthia exclaimed in exasperation. "Listen to me Lisa; if you think you're fooling anyone, well you're not. So please stop insulting my intelligence"
Lisa hadn't been expecting that reaction from the normally clueless Cynthia. 'So it's that bad, huh?' She went silent for a moment before she could find her words and yet again make another lame excuse.
"Look Cyn. I'm just…I've been having rough days. You know what it's like …"
"Lisa, come on. This is so much more than just a few rough days" Cynthia interrupted while giving her friend a knowing look "You have been my mentor for over a year, and as of lately it's been me who has been on the outlook to save you from… well, to save you from screwing up. My God, it feels like we've entered the Twilight Zone!"
The redhead regretted her words as soon as they left her mouth and a startled Lisa gasped in surprise. Cynthia did not mean to hurt her friend's feelings but the whole situation was getting weirder and weirder and Lisa was visibly in denial or maybe she wasn't really aware of how bad things had gotten. So she decided to explain things in detail.
"Look, perhaps booking a honeymoon suite for Mr. Forrester and Mr. Jacobs wasn't that bad. Lucky for us, they both took it with great sense of humor and so did their wives. But you know sending peanut butter cups to Ms. Pierce could have been lethal; you forgot the woman is allergic for God sake!"
Tears pricked Lisa's eyes just as realization dawned on her "Oh my God Cyn, do not joke with that! That woman has stayed at the Lux so many times, she..."
"She made it perfectly clear that she's allergic to peanuts and so is her son. You explained that to me back in the days when I was training. I don't know what's going on at the moment, but Lisa, you're not yourself these days. So far you've been lucky that I've got your back, but what if we run out of luck? Maybe not today but soon, something could happen and before it does I think..." Cynthia had been dreading to say the words, but she just had to "I think it would do you real good to take some time off"
"No, no, no forget it Cyn. You don't know what you're saying" Lisa shook her head in denial. To her, work was way of coping with her fears; and while there was no place where she would feel completely safe, she could say that work was the place where she felt the least unsafe. She couldn't bear the idea of going back to her place and just sit there to wait for… Lord knows. However, Cynthia would not let it go that easily. She felt in debt to Lisa for having saved her ass so many times. It was time to return the favor before it was too late.
"Lisa, you've got to do it. Come on, how long has it been since the last time you took vacations – two, three years? Look, I won't keep pushing you to tell me whatever is wrong right now, but I can tell it is deep shit, and you need to sort it out before you collapse and work isn't helping you at all. And I've got to say that right now…" Cynthia got hold of Lisa's hand, hoping to get her attention since she had turned her head to the side "Lisa, look at me. Right now, taking some time off from work is your decision. Please do not wait until the whole situation gets worse and someone else decides it's time for you to leave…for good"
Damn! Even though it was super bizarre to hear this from Cynthia, Lisa had to admit that her friend had a point. After a long pause, she took a deep breath and turned to look at her friend again. She couldn't hold the tears back any longer
"Thank you Cynthia" Lisa sighed in acceptance "You're right, I… I am taking a break. I just hope it helps me calm down and well... I guess it couldn't hurt right?" She blinked back her tears and carried on "Just promise me you'll take care of everything while I'm not there"
Cynthia nodded and smiled, trying to reassure Lisa "Of course I will. And listen, I can tell you are afraid. Not just of leaving the Lux…" She stopped for a moment to offer Lisa a tissue. "It's something else, I know you won't share it with me, but I also know you're strong enough to face your demons. On the other hand, you will never do it if you keep hiding behind a desk. And in the end, if you decide you can't do it on your own, just know you can count on me OK?"
And that was the moment when Lisa couldn't take it anymore. She stood, hugged her friend with all her might and started sobbing not caring who else was at the coffee shop, she just let her pain out.
